Road Class 3
Dedication to Truth 1)
• Delaying Gratification means not just living for “Fun” • Start addressing the things in your life that need improvement • The things in your life that are slowing you down
2)
• Accepting Gratification means accepting the fact that you are the only one responsible for what you do in our life • We need to Accept Responsibility for the things in our lives that slow us down in our walk down the Road Ahead
• To properly examine our life to find the things that need improvement, we have to be Dedicated to Truth • Being Dedicated to Truth… • Simply means being honest with yourself • Not kidding yourself
• Psalm 51:6 6)
Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.
• NIV – “Behold you desire truth in the inner being; make me therefore to know wisdom in my inmost heart.” • God is looking for truth • God wants us to be full of truth in our deepest, innermost heart… • Those thoughts that only we know ourselves • Those times late at night when you lay there thinking about your life • God wants us to be truthful with ourselves and him even then… • Have you ever heard of “Rose Colored Glasses”? • Someone might be criticized for “looking at life through rose colored glasses” • They think that things are a lot more rosy than they actually are • The fact is we ALL look at life through some set of “glasses” • Glasses of understanding that view things in a certain way... • We may look at everything thinking we are the greatest thing on the earth • We may look at everything thinking that we are nothing at all • The key to being Dedicated to Truth is taking a good, long, honest look at the set of glasses that we look at ourselves and life through • The glasses we look through... must be truth. • We shouldn’t look through rose colored glasses... • We shouldn’t look through outdated glasses... • We shouldn’t look through broken glasses... • We shouldn’t lie to ourselves... • We shouldn’t think that we are something that we are not...
• We shouldn’t think that things are what they are not... • The more clearly we see the truth, the better equipped we are to deal with the world. • The more readily we accept the truth, about ourselves, about others, about life... • The better equipped we are to deal with the world. • We must know where we are, and where we want to go • We must understand who we are, and who we want to be. • We have to be honest with ourselves... • We have to be truthful with ourselves • Knowing the truth will help us do that... • John 8:31 - 32 31) 32)
Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
• That’s what Jesus was saying when he said that “the truth will set you free” • How are we made free by truth? • When you lie you are trapped by that lie forever • When your view of life is wrong, when you are not being truthful with yourself • You are trapped by those glasses… • Trapped by your incorrect view of life • Slave to your own lies • When we are Dedicated to Truth • We no longer have to hide behind false fronts... • We no longer have to suffer the pain of going at things from the wrong direction... • We no longer have to make so many mistakes...
• To be Dedicated to Truth, we have to read and learn God's Word • Get guidance by His Word • Live by it… And do it! • James 1:22-25 – NIV! 22)
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23) For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24) For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25) But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. • Our perception of truth is how we navigate through life. • Our perception of truth is how we look at life • And it therefore must be true - correct • How does it get so wrong? • How do we get to a position where we are constantly lying to ourselves? • Your role in life is continually changing... • Person's perception of life as a baby • World is small, evolves around parents, you are only person in it • Person's perception of life as a child • World is small, now it evolves around you, you are the most important person in it • Person's perception as a teenager • World is large, it probably still evolves around you, you are confused about your position in the world • Person's perception as an adult
• World is huge, it evolves around your children, they are the most important people in it… And then it changes again… • We must continually redefine our perception of life to grow and progress • We get out of truth, when we evolve through a stage and life, and either refuse to accept it, or don’t even know it • Redefining our perception of life is natural and common amongst children, but it often dies in adulthood. • Our perception has to be continually redefined because the world is continually changing, and our role in the world is changing • We form beliefs in our childhood for example, that carry into our life • Some are good, some are bad; but they all have to be continually redefined as you grow up: • Little boy hits another when he wants to get his way • That's Bad, but it does get him his way • Grows up to be a wife abuser • Because his perception never changed... • Dependent on your parents as a small child • That's Good, but it has to come to an end • Grows up to be tied to them, and incapable of standing on own • Your perception didn't mature like the rest of you did... • Going to Sunday School each week, "Whether you want to or not" • Grow up to be a "Remote Control Christian" - someone who goes to church just out of habit, and not out of desire • Your perception of life needs to change, as you change... • Learn from our experiences and failures and then change to be better • We are always confronted with new information which requires us to redefine our perception of life. Things that happen in your life that are different than what you
always thought they would be like... or should be like. • People ignore the new information, because it requires too much energy to redefine their perception. • Many people expend more energy defending their old perceptions of things, or bending reality to fit their old perception, than it would have taken to redefine it in the first place. • Ugly Duckling – Beautiful Swan • Ugly, fat, little girl - Develops a bad perception of herself • Grows up to be a beautiful young woman with a low self-esteem because she never reassessed her perception… She still thinks of herself as undesirable… • Falls in love with the first chump that asks her out … And he walks all over her • It would make for a much better life, and ultimately a much easier Road to address the problem • Realize that you have a low self esteem, correct that problem, and wait for someone better to come along to date... • But no, she labors under these false beliefs that she’s not worth much, and goes through life not getting treated like much. • Do not avoid the truth, just because it doesn't fit into your perception of what truth is. • Do not avoid what Life is trying to tell you. • Everyone telling you that you deserve better - Don't ignore it! • Guy who has a bad attitude - He's a real jerk - and he drives all his friends away • Unless he realizes this, and corrects it - He'll drive them all away • He'll expend huge amounts of energy - buying clothes - making himself up – looking sharp - going places – buying toys • Just to get rejected again • Unless he corrects the real problem! • Truth is avoided because it is sometimes painful.
• It is hard to change! • We must always hold Truth above our own personal comfort. • (3) Easy Steps to Being "Dedicated to Truth": 1) Live a life of continuous self-examination • Constantly questioning yourself and examining yourself • No one else can judge your motives besides you • Ask yourself why you said what you said, why you did what you did… • Look around you to determine whether or not you are looking at life and yourself through the proper pair of glasses • AND you must constantly examine the Examiner • 1st Corinthians 11:28-32 28) 29) 30) 31) 32)
But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
2) Always be willing to be personally challenged. • The only way we can be certain our map is true, is expose it to the criticism of others - and evaluate and grow from their criticisms • This is, of course, the hardest thing in the world to do • To actually listen to the negative things people are saying about you • The old Chinese Proverb about seeing your true reflection in a dirty pool • If you are confident in your map, then you are not afraid of challenge
• If you really are striving to live a life of Dedication to the Truth, you won’t mind hearing what others think about how you are doing • Psalm 139:23-24 23) 24)
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
• David was even willing to open himself up to the criticism of God 3) Live a life of total honesty • Lying is an attempt to circumvent pain - the confrontation of painful experiences is our only way to progress • Develop good habits of truth • How can you possibly be honest with yourself, if you are not honest with those around you? • 1st John 2:4 4)
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
• To live a life that is pleasing to God, and most beneficial to ourselves… • We must always be honest with ourselves... • To be Dedicated to Truth means that we are always willing to be challenged and to grow (no matter how painful the process) • When your honest with yourself • When you live a life dedicated to Truth, you sometimes find that your life is out of balance • That is what we are going to talk about next class... • Balancing Your Life
• Delaying Gratification means not just living for “Fun” • Start addressing the things in your life that need improvement • The things in your life that are slowing you down
2)
• Accepting Gratification means accepting the fact that you are the only one responsible for what you do in our life • We need to Accept Responsibility for the things in our lives that slow us down in our walk down the Road Ahead
• To properly examine our life to find the things that need improvement, we have to be Dedicated to Truth • Being Dedicated to Truth… • Simply means being honest with yourself • Not kidding yourself
• Psalm 51:6 6)
Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.
• NIV – “Behold you desire truth in the inner being; make me therefore to know wisdom in my inmost heart.” • God is looking for truth • God wants us to be full of truth in our deepest, innermost heart… • Those thoughts that only we know ourselves • Those times late at night when you lay there thinking about your life • God wants us to be truthful with ourselves and him even then… • Have you ever heard of “Rose Colored Glasses”? • Someone might be criticized for “looking at life through rose colored glasses” • They think that things are a lot more rosy than they actually are • The fact is we ALL look at life through some set of “glasses” • Glasses of understanding that view things in a certain way... • We may look at everything thinking we are the greatest thing on the earth • We may look at everything thinking that we are nothing at all • The key to being Dedicated to Truth is taking a good, long, honest look at the set of glasses that we look at ourselves and life through • The glasses we look through... must be truth. • We shouldn’t look through rose colored glasses... • We shouldn’t look through outdated glasses... • We shouldn’t look through broken glasses... • We shouldn’t lie to ourselves... • We shouldn’t think that we are something that we are not...
• We shouldn’t think that things are what they are not... • The more clearly we see the truth, the better equipped we are to deal with the world. • The more readily we accept the truth, about ourselves, about others, about life... • The better equipped we are to deal with the world. • We must know where we are, and where we want to go • We must understand who we are, and who we want to be. • We have to be honest with ourselves... • We have to be truthful with ourselves • Knowing the truth will help us do that... • John 8:31 - 32 31) 32)
Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
• That’s what Jesus was saying when he said that “the truth will set you free” • How are we made free by truth? • When you lie you are trapped by that lie forever • When your view of life is wrong, when you are not being truthful with yourself • You are trapped by those glasses… • Trapped by your incorrect view of life • Slave to your own lies • When we are Dedicated to Truth • We no longer have to hide behind false fronts... • We no longer have to suffer the pain of going at things from the wrong direction... • We no longer have to make so many mistakes...
• To be Dedicated to Truth, we have to read and learn God's Word • Get guidance by His Word • Live by it… And do it! • James 1:22-25 – NIV! 22)
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23) For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24) For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25) But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. • Our perception of truth is how we navigate through life. • Our perception of truth is how we look at life • And it therefore must be true - correct • How does it get so wrong? • How do we get to a position where we are constantly lying to ourselves? • Your role in life is continually changing... • Person's perception of life as a baby • World is small, evolves around parents, you are only person in it • Person's perception of life as a child • World is small, now it evolves around you, you are the most important person in it • Person's perception as a teenager • World is large, it probably still evolves around you, you are confused about your position in the world • Person's perception as an adult
• World is huge, it evolves around your children, they are the most important people in it… And then it changes again… • We must continually redefine our perception of life to grow and progress • We get out of truth, when we evolve through a stage and life, and either refuse to accept it, or don’t even know it • Redefining our perception of life is natural and common amongst children, but it often dies in adulthood. • Our perception has to be continually redefined because the world is continually changing, and our role in the world is changing • We form beliefs in our childhood for example, that carry into our life • Some are good, some are bad; but they all have to be continually redefined as you grow up: • Little boy hits another when he wants to get his way • That's Bad, but it does get him his way • Grows up to be a wife abuser • Because his perception never changed... • Dependent on your parents as a small child • That's Good, but it has to come to an end • Grows up to be tied to them, and incapable of standing on own • Your perception didn't mature like the rest of you did... • Going to Sunday School each week, "Whether you want to or not" • Grow up to be a "Remote Control Christian" - someone who goes to church just out of habit, and not out of desire • Your perception of life needs to change, as you change... • Learn from our experiences and failures and then change to be better • We are always confronted with new information which requires us to redefine our perception of life. Things that happen in your life that are different than what you
always thought they would be like... or should be like. • People ignore the new information, because it requires too much energy to redefine their perception. • Many people expend more energy defending their old perceptions of things, or bending reality to fit their old perception, than it would have taken to redefine it in the first place. • Ugly Duckling – Beautiful Swan • Ugly, fat, little girl - Develops a bad perception of herself • Grows up to be a beautiful young woman with a low self-esteem because she never reassessed her perception… She still thinks of herself as undesirable… • Falls in love with the first chump that asks her out … And he walks all over her • It would make for a much better life, and ultimately a much easier Road to address the problem • Realize that you have a low self esteem, correct that problem, and wait for someone better to come along to date... • But no, she labors under these false beliefs that she’s not worth much, and goes through life not getting treated like much. • Do not avoid the truth, just because it doesn't fit into your perception of what truth is. • Do not avoid what Life is trying to tell you. • Everyone telling you that you deserve better - Don't ignore it! • Guy who has a bad attitude - He's a real jerk - and he drives all his friends away • Unless he realizes this, and corrects it - He'll drive them all away • He'll expend huge amounts of energy - buying clothes - making himself up – looking sharp - going places – buying toys • Just to get rejected again • Unless he corrects the real problem! • Truth is avoided because it is sometimes painful.
• It is hard to change! • We must always hold Truth above our own personal comfort. • (3) Easy Steps to Being "Dedicated to Truth": 1) Live a life of continuous self-examination • Constantly questioning yourself and examining yourself • No one else can judge your motives besides you • Ask yourself why you said what you said, why you did what you did… • Look around you to determine whether or not you are looking at life and yourself through the proper pair of glasses • AND you must constantly examine the Examiner • 1st Corinthians 11:28-32 28) 29) 30) 31) 32)
But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
2) Always be willing to be personally challenged. • The only way we can be certain our map is true, is expose it to the criticism of others - and evaluate and grow from their criticisms • This is, of course, the hardest thing in the world to do • To actually listen to the negative things people are saying about you • The old Chinese Proverb about seeing your true reflection in a dirty pool • If you are confident in your map, then you are not afraid of challenge
• If you really are striving to live a life of Dedication to the Truth, you won’t mind hearing what others think about how you are doing • Psalm 139:23-24 23) 24)
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
• David was even willing to open himself up to the criticism of God 3) Live a life of total honesty • Lying is an attempt to circumvent pain - the confrontation of painful experiences is our only way to progress • Develop good habits of truth • How can you possibly be honest with yourself, if you are not honest with those around you? • 1st John 2:4 4)
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
• To live a life that is pleasing to God, and most beneficial to ourselves… • We must always be honest with ourselves... • To be Dedicated to Truth means that we are always willing to be challenged and to grow (no matter how painful the process) • When your honest with yourself • When you live a life dedicated to Truth, you sometimes find that your life is out of balance • That is what we are going to talk about next class... • Balancing Your Life
